Rodini Park Rhodes gets new team

Dabs Banner: May 2013

The Greek island of Rhodes has always been proud of its Rodini Valley Park which it promotes as a major Rhodes holiday attraction. Now the Rodini Valley park is to get its own management team to develop and promote the green space for both local people and Rhodes' annual holiday visitors.

The main aim of the new body will be to enhance the park's features, manage its wildlife, protect its archaeological treasures and run cultural and educational events.

Rodini Park was very popular in Roman times and is thought to be one of the first landscaped park in the world. The park is located in a green, shady valley just 10 minutes walks from the city centre of Rhodes.

Popular with locals as well as holiday tourists, the densely wooded valley has a small stream and is home to a wide variety of wildlife including resident peacocks and deer.

The park is a great escape from the heat and noise of the city where cool, shady pathways thread their way through woodland and along the banks of the stream.

The Romans liked it so much they began landscaping the area as parkland, building an aqueduct and erecting park buildings which have remained to today.

One of the archaeological highlights is the tomb of the Ptolemies lined with its 21 Doric columns that dates back to Hellenistic times .

The park has grown so popular with holiday visitors over the past decade that the authorities in Rhodes are to set up a special organisation to manage it.

The main objective will be the protection of the park and to keep its character while at the same time developing the park for recreation and relaxation,.

The top priorities will be developing existing green spaces and creating new ones, enhancing the archaeological treasures, developing its educational role and promoting park cultural and artistic events.